Nine players. $27 million. November the 7th will see two left standing with final play finishing on November the 10th. Commence all the hype… and place your prop bets.

The November Nine

Darvin Moon: recreational player who owns a logging company in Maryland. Admits he has been lucky with the cards and is probably the worst player at the table. A flopped set saw him take his spot at the final table over 2009 $2k No-Limit Hold ‘em bracelet winner Jordan Smith’s aces.

Eric Buchman: the New Yorker is no stranger to the tables having around $1m in tournament cashes already in the bank. His biggest cash was $208k in WSOPC Atlantic City in 2007. His place at the final table will give him his biggest ever win no matter where he places.

Steven Begleiter: Classed as an amateur in the game but with a lifetime’s history of playing, Steven Begleiter considers himself a winner for getting this far. He won his entry to the Main Event through a home-league game and admits he’s been playing well and chanced out on some lucky breaks to remain standing amidst the pool of sharks that he’s been swimming with in this event.

Jeff Shulman: first and foremost, Jeff is editor of Cardplayer Magazine, but he can hold his own on the felt too. His journey to the final table was fairly methodically executed with Jeff reportedly saying the competition has been full of amateurs and the easiest field he’s had to contend with in an event like this yet. He was even quoted as saying that he’d throw the bracelet in the bin if he won it as a sign of his disdain for the way the WSOP has been managed in latter years.

Joseph Cada: at 21, Joseph will be the youngest player at the final table. An adept player with most successes being online, Joseph has done well in the WSOP so far this year with a couple of cashes under his belt. A regular at the WSOP, Cada will be looking to convert his hard earned opportunity in to hard cash.

Kevin Schaffel: one of the older players (51) on the final table, Kevin’s aspirations are of retirement with a healthy sum on which he can indulge in his hobbies. His 5 years of serious poker playing have probably just earned him that opportunity – just making it to the final table will see him earn his biggest win to date when he sweeps up the guaranteed $1m. Schaffel is psyched to get back on the felt so his hunger could see him kick his game up another level.

Phil Ivey: no introduction needed. Ivey is the clear favourite for winning at the final table of 2009’s WSOP Main Event. His journey was a slightly shaky one at times resulting in him returning as one of the short stacks, but the 7-time bracelet winner made it bagging 2 bracelets in this year’s tournament on his way, so underestimating him would be fatal. Phil is being hailed as poker’s new messiah – if he wins, it will prove to the world that poker is a game of true skill and a valid career choice as opposed to a game of luck that any amateur can play.

Antoine Saout: support for Saout was notable at this year’s WSOP. And there was good reason for that. Saout, who regularly cleans up online at Everest Poker, got his Main Event ticket through a satellite on Everest along with a number of other Everest players who also qualified for the Main Event. His place at the final table guarantees him and his fellow Everest players a slice of a one million dollar bonus. Hear the crowd roar. Antoine will take up his place at the felt as the second shortest stack but the Frenchman should not be ruled out as a serious contender.

James Akenhead: this Londoner’s dream is to win the WSOP Main Event and he’s doing everything to make that happen. He got a bad beat at one of 2008’s $1,500 tournaments and narrowly missed out on a bracelet then, so is looking to compensate for falling short. James is the short stack for the final table but has a rowdy bunch of supporters to spur him on – probably fellow members of the ‘Hit Squad’, the elite poker pro club for English players.